Potato Planting

I've put in my potatoes a little earlier than usual this year as I'll be away later in the month. I used to plant on March 17th, St Patrick's Day, but it's usually too early; the ground is often too cold and wet and the foliage emerges while there's still a risk of frost.

Digging  the trenches over several days in an attempt to avoid back pain, following the 'little and often' regime I've promised myself, I lined them with grass clippings from the first cut of the season.

I've found this an excellent way of avoiding scab on the tubers at harvest time.

In went several Red Duke of York, which will give me a fairly early crop; also Forty Fold swapped with Rebsie at  Daughter of the Soil and some Golden Wonder I got from my allotment neighbour, Carol. The rest are Charlotte my favourite second early, salad type, excellent as a roaster and it produces a rich buttery looking mash too.

I'll plant several rows on the allotment as well including some Mr Little's Yetholm Gypsy (again from Rebsie), Markie (again from Carol) and a couple Edzell Blue to try out for the first time. As for the rest - more Charlotte.

The trenches are back filled and then the loose soil mounded up to 'earth up' the tubers. That way there shouldn't be much, if any, growth above ground until mid May by which time the risk of a frost checking growth should be over at least here in the South. As the foliage emerges I'll earth up more soil. By June or when the foliage is meeting in and between the rows, the tubers will be growing away in a large mound at least a foot and a half deep or so.

Comments

[Yolanda Elizabet]

Hi,

I've planted some Red Duke of York too. For me it's the first time that I grow my own potatoes. Reading your blog it looks like you're an experienced person as far as growing potatoes are concerned. ;-)

BTW Found you via Kate Smudges.

---Yolanda, you'll like Red Duke of York, they look good on the plate, they harvest early and they taste good!

[Lynn]

I have a small garden and planted 6 potatoes last year, I used straw to cover the plants but ended up with mice and rotted stems. This year I would like to plant them again and would like a sugestion on how to mound the dirt so it don't wash away when it rains.

Thank You

Lynn,
The more you mound up (within reason) the less it matters if some washes away in the rain (in my experience the rain has to be very hard to cause this). Also you might make the mound shallow sloping, not steep sided which should help prevent movement. If it does wash away then you'll just have to earth it up again which shouldn't be too big a job if you don't have many tubers.